Greece breaks ground on new data center, advancing tech and AI hub ambitions

Greece is on track to establish itself as a regional hub for technology and artificial intelligence with the development of two new data centers by French firm Data4.

On Nov. 19, Cointelegraph attended the ground-breaking ceremony for the new facility, located just outside Athens, the Greek capital.

Data4 ground-breaking ceremony in Paiania, East Attica, Greece. Source: Cointelegraph

Investing in the future

The event marks Data4’s expansion into the Greek market, which is positioning itself as a key hub for connectivity and data hosting in the Mediterranean region

Data4’s new campus is also expected to play a crucial role in the development of Greece’s digital infrastructure, supporting its ambition to be a regional leader in the technology and IT sectors.

Initial construction on the first data center at the Paiania, East Attica campus. Source: Cointelegraph

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and other government officials and Data4 utives attended the ceremony.

During his speech, Mitsotakis highlighted the investment’s potential to boost the local economy, improve Greece’s global image and create opportunities for skilled technical workers. “The government is committed to supporting projects that drive digital transformation and foster innovation,” Mitsotakis said.

Mitsotakis speaking at the Data4 ground-breaking ceremony. Source: Cointelegraph

Data4 plans at least two buildings, the first of which is now under construction and is projected to take approximately two years to complete. The second one will begin “depending on the market absorption and acceleration [in Greece],” according to Olivier Micheli, the CEO of Data4

“The plan is by the end of 2026, [or] January 2027, the first data center will be ready,” he said

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Cointelegraph asked Michelis how the Greek market compares to other European countries where Data4 operates. He said it is “pretty similar,” with local national firms needing to host their data. He added:

“The government [here] is very active, [it] has a program transition to the cloud and digital to facilitate the lives of the citizens. The government is already a big consumer. As well, you have all the tech giants that are willing to support AI and cloud development in the country.”

European data center development

The event came just two months after the initial announcement from Data4 about its investment intentions in Greece, as Cointelegraph reported in September

Micheli said the Greek investment will amount to approximately “300 million euros for the first two data centers.” “And if we work very well with the community, if we are able to build a third data center here, it will be around 450–500 million euros in total,” he added.

Data4 is one of multiple firms investing in data centers across Europe. The company already manages several data centers in six European countries (including Greece) and has a 7 billion euro investment target for expansion by 2030

Other major players in the tech space, including Microsoft, have invested heavily in data centers and AI-related initiatives across Europe

In February, Microsoft announced a $2 billion investment in Spain to develop AI data centers. Microsoft also initiated an investment project in Greece similar to Data4, which was announced in 2020 and recently gained ministerial approval

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